Christmas is the one big event every single year that many families find very financially stressful. Alot of people will go out this year and buy lavish presents for their loved ones and put it all on credit. Oh NO THEY DIDN’T! Yes, unfortunately this will happen. If only those people knew that with a bit of planning, you can have a happy holiday without all of the additional debt. Wouldn’t that be nice?
This is how we save money during the Christmas season:
1. Create A Christmas Calendar. – Having our Christmas Calendar helps to make sure that we get everything completed on time and that we stay on budget. Without this calendar every year, I would be lost. I would definetely forget something and then be scrambling to pick up the pieces at the last minute.
2. Buy Gifts Throughout The Year. – This is a big one. I am always looking for Christmas (and birthday) gifts all year round. By doing this, I can buy gifts when they go on sale and then just put them away until the big day. We have a “yearly expenses” savings account at the bank and every month we put some money into this account for things like Christmas, pet vaccines and other things that happen yearly. That way when we see something on sale in March, we can get the money from the savings account to buy the item and then put it away until we need it.
3. Make Homemade Gifts. – We started doing this two years ago and our families still talk about the gifts we made them so I would say that homemade gifts are a huge hit around here! Not only are they thoughtful, but they are usually pretty inexpensive as well. We normally make baked goods like cookies and squares and then use pretty packaging to wrap them up.
4. Set A Budget. – We have a certain amount for Christmas gifts every year and we have to stick to that number. Once we’ve spent all that we budgeted – that’s it! If we want to get something else for someone, we have to get it with other money. That could be our allowances or by cashing in some Swagbucks. We’re usually pretty good at staying on budget though. Except this year we bought our parents some VERY expensive items (can’t say what they are until after Christmas!), but we had the money set aside.
5. No Gifts For Each Other. – Richard and I decided a few years ago that we would only buy each other gifts on our birthdays. If we want to give each other something on our anniversary, Christmas, etc. – that money has to come out of our allowances. I’ve found that this saves us alot of money every year and it also makes the birthday gifts that much more special.
6. Use An Artificial Tree. – As much as I love the smell of a real tree, cleaning up those dang needles all the time would drive me nuts! That, and I would rather invest $100 or so on an artificial tree that I can keep for years than spend $40-$50 on a real tree every single year.
7. Stock Up On Baking Supplies. – I always like to take advantage of the crazy amount of sales on baking supplies in November and December. I buy as much as I need to last me a year and then do it all over again the next year. Doing this saves us mucho deniro on the things that we use all year round but only go on sale once a year.
These are some ways that we save money at Christmas time. What do you do to save money this time of year?
i love the bulk barn!!
and i give away lots of my sample items as gifts as well. package them up all pretty and people love it!
I buy gifts throughout the year. Use some of the P & G samples for men for one of my sons and brother-in-law and they love the razors, etc. I go to my local second hand store where they sell lots of second hand Christmas items (profits go to the food bank) and I use some of these items to make Christmas gifts. It’s fun to give gifts and see the smile on people face after they open the gift! I look for turkey and other meal items on sale too! Bulk Barn is a great place to go to find ingredients for cookies, cakes, etc and they usually have $$$- off coupons. Merry Christmas!
I’m so thrilled to say that Swagbucks, survey sites, and some other online money makers will be paying for most of our Christmas expenses this year! I’ve also been very disciplined the past few years about using only one rewards credit card and paying it off in January when the bill comes in. Besides Christmas, we’ve got 2 kids with December birthdays so spending can easily get out of control if we don’t stay focused on the budget. I used to do homemade gifts but can’t seem to find the time or inspiration anymore.
oh yah, moving christmas a bit later would be a great idea! i have always thought about doing that. it’s hard when you have like 5 houses to go to on christmas day, it’s so much easier if you space them out!
One thing that we have always joked about which we want to do but can’t because of family but move Xmas a later date, sometime after boxing day LOL
We have had the same tree for a few years now. My husband likes it because he says it brings beck memories of the kids being little(they are still little, just bigger little). We live near a really popular Christmas tree farm, and I know they charge $55 for a tree!! Can’t justify spending $55 for something that gets thrown away. My husband gets an attendance bonus every December that comes in(after BRUTAL taxes)at around $600. That is used for gifts. We buy for the kids and a couple small things for each other. We did the no gifts for each other for about 9 years, and my husband finally confessed that it made him depressed. I am fine with it really because we get what we need and want all year. He works at a car plant here in Ontario that shuts down for 10 days over Christmas. I work shifts then because he is home. That saves money because I do not have to pay someone to watch the kids. We do pretty well, and don’t go into added debt. Which is good, because January to April really stink!!!
I definitely agree about shopping throughout the year! I’m always on the lookout for Christmas/Birthday gifts. I also try to have all my shopping done by December 1st so I can avoid the craziness of shopping malls! Lol.
tiffany – agreed, it is so much cheaper!
barbara – it took awhile for me to convince my hubs to get a fake one too, but once i did there was no turning back!
Me and my husband don’t buy for each other either.Its just easier and A LOT cheaper!
I keep trying to get a nice fake tree, but my boyfriend insists on buying a real one every year! Last year our tree was $75! I hate cleaning those needles too.